Pistachio Pound Cake With Strawberries And Cream

If you've read this blog for some time, you must know how much I love to work with recipes where the focus is on the fruit of the season. My first foray of baking with fruit began with Isidora Popovic's 'Popina Book of Baking'. My very first recipe on this blog came from that book. I was absolutely taken in by how the fruit added so much more to the flavour and freshness of my bakes. 

I, then followed it up with Nigel Slater's 'Ripe : A Cook in the Orchard', a book that opened up a collection of recipes that paired fruit in sweet as well as savoury dishes. And my latest addition to this small collection is Yossy Arefi's 'Sweeter off the Vine'. Yossy is the voice behind the blog, 'Apt. 2B Baking Co'. I adore everything about this Brooklyn based baker and photographer's blog..the recipes, the photography and now I'm completely taken in with her book. If you enjoy baking and somehow, haven't yet discovered her blog, I'd seriously recommend it. 

 

The season of fruits in India may differ from those in these books but each of the books mentioned above always has space for recipes that work with strawberries, the fruit currently in season. Out of all of the book's recipes with strawberries, I zeroed in on the pistachio pound cake that is paired with strawberries and cream. I do have my eye on the strawberry and campari ice pops but those will have to wait for the weather to get a bit warmer.

 

I was intrigued by the pistachio pound cake. I have used almond meal in my cakes and have loved the depth and richness that it has given my cakes but have never worked with pistachios. And what an absolute delight this pound cake was. 

Who doesn't love a good, hearty pound cake and the pistachios give it that something extra to stand apart from your regular pound cake. You can taste the pistachios but it is not overpowering at all. It just adds a lil something special to the wholesomeness of a pound cake.

The recipe pairs thick slices of this cake with strawberries macerated in a lavender sugar and cream. While the idea of lavender sugar had me really excited, unfortunately I couldn't get my hands on it out here. So, I adapted by macerating the strawberries in vanilla and some liqueur. 

Serving strawberries and cream with this cake immediately elevates it as an elegant dessert. However, if you don't want to serve it with strawberries and cream, I assure you that pound cake, warm out of the oven, with a cup of tea is still a winner.

Hope you all had a lovely weekend..xx!

Baileys Cheesecake / Homemade Irish Cream

While I like to flavour my food and desserts with a dash of alcohol, I am not much of a drinker. Despite that I tend to be partial to liqueurs.  I'm always ready to sample a new one. Maybe because I am intrigued by the flavours with which they are infused with. Whether they are infused with fruits, herbs, flowers, woods or spices, they all have a little story that speaks of the region they come from or I have a little story to go with it.

 

Like the first time I tried cherry liqueur was in Sikkim, in India's north-east corner. Having returned to civilization after a week of trekking in the mountains in the area, we were offered a glass of it as a welcome drink at the hotel we were staying. The luxury of the drink after a week of roughing it out was a memory that won't be forgotten easily! Or like the time, I had my first taste of ouzo, the Greek aniseed liqueur, in University, thanks to a bottle that a Greek flatmate had lugged all the way from home. And how he diluted it with water because he didn't trust that we would be able to handle its high alcohol content!

 

And then there's Baileys, for which I will always have a soft spot. I was allowed a taste of it, I think, while I was still in school and that taste of sweet cream tinged with alcohol has remained a favourite. 

 

I had in an earlier post talked of making my own vodka based fruit liqueurs. It's all very simple except that they all have a resting period of a few weeks to let the flavours infuse. Turns out, its even simpler to make your own homemade Baileys. And there's no resting time. Just whisk everything in a bowl and a bottle of Irish cream is at your command!!

 

My sister and I had made it a few years back and I thought I revisit making it over the long weekend. Try it for yourself and you won't get over how ridiculously easy it is. The recipe is from 'Farmette', Imen's charming blog as she chronicles her life on an Irish farm.

 

Because, it is a cream based liqueur, you are advised to finish it off in 2 weeks. So, either you give the gang of friends an invite to finish off the bottle or you hunt around the Internet for a recipe that will do the same. I zeroed in on a Baileys cheesecake.

I have gone with a no-bake cheesecake because I already have a recipe for a baked cheesecake that is gold. And baking it, would have taken away all taste of the Baileys as most of the alcohol would evaporate during baking. I also experimented with agar agar powder instead of gelatine and the results were extremely favourable.

 

I baked my base only because I couldn't find any digestive biscuits at home to make a no-bake biscuit base. But, you can always make a biscuit base. It will be easier and less fussy. Despite using a substantial amount of Irish cream, the taste of it is subtle in the finished product. The thin layer of coffee jelly not only helps with the presentation but helps to cut through all the creaminess that could get a bit too heavy, if left all by itself. 

 

This would be perfect as a grown-ups dessert for a weekend dinner. I think you'll enjoy it as much as we did.

 

And what about you .. have you tasted any interesting liqueurs that come with an even more interesting story?? I'd love to hear about it. Hope you enjoyed the long weekend!!

 

Eton Mess

And the cricket World Cup has begun! You have to be Indian to understand the passion and emotion the game brings out amongst us. Everything pales into insignificance when India is playing. Roads empty out, meetings are planned according to the game schedule, business news channels give way to sports channels and work.. well.. it gets done, almost, but with one eye always on the score!

 

So, this is where I make my confession. The only games I'll watch are the ones with India in them. When India is playing, I'll cheer every Indian boundary and cry out in horror when an Indian wicket falls. I'll cross all my fingers and toes and bite the skin round my nails when the game goes down to the last over. But, for all other matches, I couldn't be bothered. Because the truth of the matter is that after all these years, I haven't yet figured out how one judges a LBW or for that matter, what is the difference between a yorker and a full toss. And no, we won't even go near the Duckworth-Lewis rule!!!!

 

 

With that confession out of the way, let's get back to the point of this post. This time, the Cup is being played out in Australia and with the time difference, the games start in the morning and end somewhere near teatime. With the last two India matches being played on Sundays, most of us, I reckon, watched the games in our pyjamas and most likely, the friends also came over in their jammies.

I am no Martha Stewart and am a firm believer that take-aways are made for times like this. But, if you are in the mood for something sweet, then I have a super-easy dessert, that is perfect for the occasion.

 

The last of the strawberries are in the market and there is no easier dessert than eton mess. There are three components to the desserts - strawberries, whipped cream and meringue. Whether you layer the three components or toss them all together, that's for you to decide. 

 

You can use shop bought meringues or make them a day earlier as I did. Having never made meringues before, I decided on swirled meringue kisses. Read through the directions once and they are very simple to make and you have to admit, extremely appealing to the eye. With the meringues done, the rest hardly takes any time.

If there is one suggestion I could make is that be generous with the strawberries. The fruit keeps the dessert light, fruity and easy on the palate. Perfect for the weather of the moment!! Despite all attention being on the match, this dessert get its fair share of compliments!!

Back to the Cup, India are the World Champions and I don't see any reason whatsoever why that should change. Go India!!!

Irish Coffee

It was almost a morning ritual. My father would reach for the newspaper over his morning tea and then, after skimming the headlines, he would turn his attention to a little box on the left. He would then go on to share it with my mother and together, they would both laugh out loud at what they had just read. And as I grew up, I too would join the many readers of the 'Times of India' who would wait every day for RK Laxman's daily cartoon strip, 'You Said It'!! That is until, a series of strokes compelled him to stop working. Last month, on the 26th of January, he passed away.

 

'The Times of India' would pay him an extensive tribute that included a collection of some of his finest works. And what a delight it was to revisit his work. His signature creation, the 'Common Man', with his checked coat, dhoti and distinctive moustache, being witness to the changes that India had seen over the years. All the while maintaining a somewhat bewildered expression at the many ironies that India throws up everyday. And who can forget his caricatures that showcased his tremendous ability to zero in on that one distinguishing feature of our public personalities that captured the very essence of their public persona.  

 

 

While the common man of today would hardly resemble Laxman's 'Common Man', one can't help notice, rather wryly, that the years have seen no change in our politicians and their ilk.

 

But, those vintage 'You Said It' cartoon strips pointed out something else too. It showed up the lack of humour in our public discourse. We have somewhere forgotten to laugh at ourselves. It is as if we take ourselves too seriously and get offended at the smallest things. And when we do laugh, the humour tends to be tinged with derision and malice, almost with an intention to humiliate rather than to humour. It is obvious and slapstick rather than being subtle and witty.

 

 

And that is why RK Laxman was a legend. In a tribute, his former colleague, Dileep Padgaonkar writes how he possessed courage and caution in equal measure. His observations of India and her diverse people and her jamboree of politicians were sharp, satirical, incisive, funny, honest and simple, even when dealing with the most complex of issues. And always without being toxic or malicious.

 

To suit the mood, I made myself a cup of Irish coffee. Essentially a cup of black coffee with a dash of whiskey and a collar of cream, it is in equal measure creamy, strong, black, hot, stimulating, sweet and naughty without being excessive on any count. A perfect allegory for the kind of humour we need to see more of.

 

 

Thank you RK Laxman for teaching us the importance of humour in our lives but more importantly, for holding up a mirror to our society, over the years. The common man will miss you. There will not be another like you!

 

Dark Hot Chocolate

It was a quiet start to the year for me. Down with the flu, I made myself a cup of hot chocolate and decided to make a mental list of resolutions for the year ahead and reflect on the lessons from the past year. But, halfway through the cuppa, all that thinking got me drowsy and I thought to myself, since when did life turn out as intended or as anticipated. So, I ditched the list but that cup of hot chocolate, I kept. If you must know, I even splashed some coffee liqueur into it!!

No one can not like hot chocolate. I like mine with dark chocolate and flavoured with cinnamon and orange. And this one is no ordinary "milk with sugar and cocoa" hot chocolate. This is milk with some cream that is infused with cinnamon and orange zest, heated and then poured over some chopped chocolate. The hot, flavoured milk will melt the chocolate and result in the most delicious, thick hot chocolate that just keeps getting thicker and more chocolaty as it cools.

Depending on your taste, substitute the dark chocolate with milk chocolate if you want it sweeter and play around with milk-cream ratio to get the desired consistency.

I leave with you some of my favourite cookbooks that have enthralled and inspired me ever since I've started writing this blog. Some have taught me, some have appealed to my fuss-free nature, some have taught me to work with fresh and seasonal produce and some have simply spoken a language I could connect with.

A dear friend recently told me, "The best is yet to come..". With that beautiful sentiment in mind, I wish you and yours, all the best that life has to offer in 2014!! Happy New Year!!

Chicken And Spinach Quiche

After weeks of lacklustre baking, I got bitten by the baking bug yesterday in a big way. I don't celebrate Christmas, so I had the whole day as a holiday where I chose to stay home and bake up a storm. Ma was a bit bewildered with all the sudden action in the kitchen. I'm holding the weather responsible for this spurt of enthusiasm...the joys of a tropical winter!!

 

 

First up, for lunch I baked a chicken and spinach quiche. After all the sweet pie and tarts that this blog has seen, a savoury quiche has been on my mind. I went with a filling of cooked chicken, spinach, cheese and some celery, for some added herby flavour. Celery is one of my favourite herbs to add to food. So, I even raised the profile of the crust, by adding some celery to the pastry. It is a subtle touch that adds bags of flavour to this pie.

 

You can play around with your filling, as per your taste. Off the top of my head, I can think of mushroom, cheese and thyme, chicken and mushroom or even spinach, corn and ricotta. Just don't be stingy with the filling. I have used an egg-cream-milk mixture to bind the filling together. If you aren't generous with your filling, you run the risk of tasting more of the egg mixture, making it taste more like a frittata. I think I managed to get the right balance.

 

 

The filling was just right. My main ingredient was the chicken, with the spinach and celery giving not only some veggie flavours but also some needed visual texture. The creamy egg mixture binds it all together without in any way overpowering the other ingredients.

 

This quiche is a rustic and hearty dish, perfect for any family dinner. Make it as a part of a larger spread or if its just two of you, then it's a meal all by itself. I would, however, recommend some sort of green salad to infuse a certain freshness to help counter all the eggy creaminess of the filling. Come to think of it, this quiche would be perfect picnic food too, with its beautiful flavours and easy portability.

 

 

I do apologise for the poor quality of the photographs. We've been experiencing some overcast weather for the past few days and the lack of natural light has really affected these pictures. Moreover, I took them in haste with everyone waiting for lunch to start!!

 

Now, come back tomorrow and I'll tell you what we had for tea! Yup, it was a busy day in the kitchen!!

 

Sitaphal (Custard Apple) No-Churn Ice Cream

In the food blogging world, October is 'pumpkin' month. Every day, all this month, my inbox will have at least one pumpkin post. But, here's the thing, for all its celebrated status in America, the pumpkin has a more modest, humble status, here in India.

 

For starters, we get this vegetable all year round and almost always, it's prepared as a savoury dish. So, not for us is the hype that surrounds the pumpkin. For me, even the idea of pumpkin in desserts, is taking its time getting used to!!

 

But, if October is the month of pumpkins in America, here in India, it is the month of custard apples, or sitaphal as we call it. They are all over the market, right now and here for the shortest time possible.

 

 

It falls in the category of fruits, best eaten alone. Savoured at leisure, as you make your way through the fruit, removing the flesh from the seeds, one at a time. It is added to a few milk-based Indian desserts but the one dessert that wins hands-down with my entire family is Sitaphal ice-cream. And none of that artificially flavoured stuff please, but the real stuff, that is ice-cream flavoured with real fruit pulp.

 

 

The recipe I turn to does not require an ice-cream maker and it does not even require you to make a custard. It is so fantastically easy and does the job brilliantly. I was introduced to the recipe by my friend Vini, who made a fig and honey version of this ice-cream. Over the summer, I saw versions of this no-churn ice-cream on Aara's blog and then, the domestic goddess herself, Nigella got into the act with a no-churn coffee ice-cream. With fabulous reviews all round, about time, I gave it a go!!

 

 

Scroll down and read the recipe and you'll see for yourself, how easy it is!! Don't get too fussy about its consistency, this is along the lines of a soft serve ice-cream. And no, there will be no ice crystals to worry about. The standout point of this ice-cream is that it has none of the artificial taste that is associated with commercial ice-cream. You will taste the fruit in all its honesty.

 

I have used sitaphal, but feel free to use any soft fruit that's in season for you. I had tried it with mango over the summer and it was much appreciated. Look around the market and the possibilities are endless.

 

 

In India, the weather in October, gets hotter before it gets any cooler. Perfect weather for a scoop as you look forward to the upcoming festive season!!

 

Espresso Profiteroles

It's been a while since I baked and posted along with the 'TWD : Baking with Julia' group. I can list a number of excuses for my absence but frankly, procrastination, as it usually does, got the better of me. But, this month's choice of espresso profiteroles got me back in the groove.

 

I'll admit it ... I am completely taken in with the French style of baking.  Right from the quaint names to the drama (almost always) involved in the technique to the flair in the presentation and finally, to the superlative taste.. I am hopelessly sold!! It's a different matter that with my clumsy fingers, I doubt I'll ever achieve their level of finesse. But, a girl can always dream!!

 

Choux pastry or pâte à choux is a classic French pastry and has been on my 'to-do' list for a long time. At some point, everyone has had a profiterole or a cream puff as they are known in the States. It would have been a small, hollow pastry puff, filled with sweetened cream and chocolate sauce drizzled all over it.

 

This version from the book, is a espresso variation of the classic, filled with cinnamon ice cream and topped with a generous drizzle of chocolate sauce.

 

So, how did the choux pastry come together?? Surprisingly, it was quite easy to put together. I am always one to put practicality first and if something feels too technically tedious, I have no qualms of buying it from the market. But, the choux pastry was a pleasant surprise, as long as you followed the recipe's instructions. It is not one of those recipes that is tried once as an academic exercise and then conveniently forgotten. Neither is it time-consuming nor tedious, that is discounting all the vigorous stirring one's gotta do.

The final product is a lot darker than your regular profiteroles, owing to the espresso in the pastry. The recipe recommends filling them with ice-cream, a completely impractical option in hot and humid India. So, instead, I filled them with chocolate cream and gave them a generous drizzle of chocolate sauce. Another change I made was that instead of cutting them in half and filling them as the recipe suggests, I made a hole in the bottom and filled these puffs with cream.

 

The espresso hides any eggy taste that you might encounter as this recipe uses a fair share of eggs. You can get creative, and fill these with custard or crème patisserie or even, lemon curd. The pastry shells were light, hollow and smothered with all that chocolate goodness, there is not much you can dislike about them.

So, what does one do when faced with a platter full of profiteroles that have chocolate sauce seductively drizzled all over them.. you simply give in!! Wasn't it Oscar Wilde who said, "The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it!!"

 

Mini Pavlovas With Mangoes And Cream

I've been missing in action for the past few weeks. Blame it on the heat.. in fact, these days, I blame the summer heat for everything that doesn't go my way!! Summer is at its peak and if you've ever experienced the Indian summer then you know how the heat has this unique ability to sap you of all enthusiasm that you might have towards life. It induces a certain lassitude and inertia that reduces life to spending much of your days indoors, till the better part of the day is over.

And yet, like the proverbial silver lining, summer has its redeeming features. The first, for me, would be the fragrance of summer flowers that come alive in the evening. As the sun sets and the blinding heat of the day recedes, a gentle wind picks up. And it brings with it the sensual and seductive scent of flowers that are unique to the tropics. Mostly white in colour, these are flowers such as jasmine, mogra, tube roses, champa, raatrani and frangipani. Step out of your indoor confines and as the heady waft of these flowers washes over you, it brings a much-needed relief and calm that makes you understand why poets and writers alike, have waxed lyrically about summer evenings!!

 

The second redeeming feature of the summer is mangoes. I had written last year about India's love affair with the fruit. The fruit is best enjoyed on its own and if it used in any dessert, it deserves that it remains the star of the show. When I first made a pavlova back in January, not only did I fall in love with this Aussie classic but I remember saying to myself that mangoes would be a good fruit to pair with the pavlova.

 

So, I went with a miniature version of a pavlova and paired it with a simple combination of mangoes and cream. While I abhor going anywhere near an oven in this weather, the beauty of a pavlova is that it can be made in advance during the cooler part of the day. And it takes no more than fifteen minutes to prepare before you pop it in the oven. Once in the oven, it can be forgotten until the prescribed time tells you to switch off the oven and leave it to cool down.

Mangoes and cream is an unbeatable combination but the pavlova base elevates it to the level of an elegant dessert. The light, chewy base is perfect for the summer where a cake or tart base would have been a tad too heavy for the season. And most importantly, the mango remains the star!!

I reckon and hope that these are the last days of the Indian summer as we count down to the monsoons. As we reel under a heat wave, the rains can't come fast enough!! Till then, simple pleasures remain our last refuge!!